1. Who we are
Owls Extra is an independent Sheffield Wednesday fan podcast and website operating at owlsextra.co.uk. We are not affiliated with Sheffield Wednesday Football Club.
When this policy refers to "we", "us" or "our", it means the Owls Extra team. We are the data controller for the personal information collected through this website.
This policy applies to all visitors and members of owlsextra.co.uk. It is written in plain English and complies with the UK General Data Protection Regulation (UK GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018.
2. What information we collect
We only collect information that is necessary for the site to function or for us to respond to you. Here is exactly what we collect and why:
Contact form submissions
When you fill in our contact form we collect your name, email address, the category of your enquiry, and your message. This is stored securely in our database so we can respond to you.
Patreon login (members only)
If you access the members area, you log in via Patreon using OAuth. We receive your Patreon email address and your membership status (whether you hold an active paid membership). We do not receive or store your Patreon password. We store a session cookie on your device to keep you logged in for up to 24 hours.
Information you provide voluntarily
If you email us directly, send a tip-off, or contact us through social media, we will hold that information to respond to your message.
League One score predictor
Our score predictor game asks for a display name of your choosing so your predictions can appear on a public leaderboard. This does not require an account or login — the name you type is shown publicly alongside your predictions and points, with no further verification. Please use a nickname rather than your full name if you'd prefer not to be identifiable. You can remove your own entry at any time (see Section 6).
Owls Extra mobile app
If you use our mobile app, we additionally collect:
- Push notification device token — if you enable notifications, your device is issued a token by Apple/Google's push notification service, which we store so we can send you the alerts you've chosen (kickoffs, livestreams, and/or match events like goals, red cards, half-time and full-time). This token identifies your device for notification purposes only — we do not use it to identify you personally, and you can disable notifications at any time in the app, which removes the stored token.
What we do NOT collect
- We do not collect payment information — Patreon handles all payments directly
- We do not sell or share your personal data with any third party for marketing purposes
- We do not run third-party advertising on this site
3. How we use your information
We use the information we collect only for the following purposes:
- To respond to your messages — contact form submissions are read and replied to by the Owls Extra team
- To provide access to the members area — your Patreon membership status is checked to grant or deny access to subscriber content on the website
- To keep you logged in — a session cookie is stored for up to 24 hours after you sign in via Patreon on the website
- To display your predictor leaderboard entry — the display name and predictions you submit are shown publicly, exactly as entered, for the purpose of the game itself
- To send you push notifications — if enabled in the app, your device token is used solely to deliver kickoff and livestream alerts you've opted into
- To understand site usage — Google Analytics helps us see aggregate traffic patterns (e.g. which pages are popular), described further in Section 4
We will never use your information for any purpose beyond what is described above without asking for your permission first.
4. Third-party services
Owls Extra uses a small number of third-party services to operate. Each has its own privacy policy:
- Patreon — handles membership payments and login on the website. Patreon Privacy Policy
- Google Analytics — we use Google Analytics to understand aggregate site traffic (e.g. how many people visit, which pages are popular). This sets analytics cookies in your browser (see Section 5). We do not use this data to identify individuals, and do not combine it with other personal data we hold. Google Privacy Policy
- YouTube (Google) — we use the YouTube Data API to display videos from our public YouTube channel. No personal user data is passed to or received from YouTube in connection with site visitors. Google Privacy Policy
- Ionos — our website is hosted on Ionos web hosting servers based in the EU. Ionos Privacy Policy
- Google Fonts — we use Google Fonts to display the Inter typeface. Your browser may send a request to Google's servers when loading the site. Google Privacy Policy
- Expo / Apple / Google (mobile app only) — our app uses Expo's push notification service, which relies on Apple's and Google's own push notification systems, to deliver notifications to your device.
We do not share your personal information with any of these services beyond what is described above.
5. Cookies
We use a small number of cookies:
- Session cookie — if you log in to the members area via Patreon, we set a session cookie to keep you authenticated. This expires after 24 hours or when you log out.
- Google Analytics cookies — used to distinguish visitors and sessions for aggregate traffic reporting. These do not identify you personally. You can opt out of Google Analytics tracking using browser extensions such as Google's own opt-out browser add-on, or by blocking cookies from google-analytics.com/googletagmanager.com in your browser settings.
We do not use advertising cookies or third-party tracking cookies beyond the analytics described above.
6. Your rights
Under UK GDPR you have the following rights regarding your personal data:
- Right of access — you can ask us what personal data we hold about you
- Right to rectification — you can ask us to correct inaccurate data
- Right to erasure — you can ask us to delete your data
- Right to restrict processing — you can ask us to stop using your data while a dispute is resolved
- Right to data portability — you can ask for a copy of your data in a portable format
- Right to object — you can object to us processing your data
To exercise any of these rights, contact us using the details in Section 8. We will respond within 30 days.
Predictor leaderboard entries specifically: since these require no login, you can remove your own entry directly within the predictor game itself (enter the same name you used, then choose the remove/delete option) rather than needing to contact us — though you're welcome to contact us instead if you'd prefer.
You also have the right to make a complaint to the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) if you believe we have mishandled your data.
7. How long we keep your data
- Contact form messages — kept for up to 12 months, then deleted
- Patreon login sessions (website) — expire after 24 hours
- Predictor leaderboard entries — kept indefinitely until you remove your own entry (see Section 6) or ask us to remove it
- Push notification device tokens — kept until you disable notifications in the app, or automatically removed if no longer valid
- Emails and direct messages — kept for as long as is reasonably necessary to resolve your enquiry
You can ask us to delete your data at any time by getting in touch.